Christie's Auction Brings in a Massive Amount of Money

Jackson Pollock just leaped into the very top tier of the art market, the New York Times reports. His 1948 drip canvas "Number 7A" sold Monday night at Christie's in New York for $181.2 million including fees, nearly tripling his previous auction high and becoming one of the priciest works of postwar art ever sold. Minutes earlier, Constantin Brancusi's bronze-and-gold "Danaïde," a sculpted head from around 1913, hit $107.6 million, also with fees. Both works came from the estate of S.I. Newhouse, the late Condé Nast chairman and voracious collector.

The 16 Newhouse lots alone totaled $630.8 million; combined with a separate evening sale of 20th-century art, Christie's took in $1.1 billion, signaling renewed strength at the very top of the market after several softer years. This was one of Christie's most successful auctions of all time, per Artnet News. As the Wall Street Journal puts it, "The art market is re-entering its Trophy Era." All Newhouse works were backed by third-party guarantees, and many hammered above presale estimates. With these results, 28 artworks by 17 artists have now crossed the $100 million mark at auction, led by Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi" at $450.3 million. The latest Newhouse tranche pushes posthumous sales from his collection past $1 billion, as his widow, Victoria, trims holdings ahead of a move to a smaller apartment.